[Review] Samsung SGH-L770V by Vodafone
Tuesday, July 29, 2008 – 07:07 (UTC)This week I decided to change phone. My 1-year-old Nokia N73 was driving me crazy, since its lack of responsiveness (12 seconds to switch display on after unlocking keyboard) and its useless battery (two days at “full charge” and then suddenly switching off in 3 hours). Plus a lot of annoying bugs (sms time, as an example) that Nokia never fixed.
I surfed on the Vodafone.it site, and I found out the Samsung SHG-L770V, an HSDPA (3.6 Mbps), UMTS phone, with radio (with RDS functionalities), Bluetooth and a 2Mpixel camera, sold at 149 euros with a special promotion.
So I decided to let the Nokia N73 die and on Saturday I went into a Vodafone One store in Verona, with only one thing in my mind: never, ever, pay more that 150 euros for a phone. Unless it’s not a phone.
I bought it, I put on my Vodafone SIM card, and started using it.
I have to say I was very surprised: it has a beautiful display, with very readable text and clear images, a long-lasting battery and an FM radio with RDS (I never found a phone with RDS, but I think it is the first thing that should be supported in a radio).
Unfortunately it cannot work with Apple’s iSync on my Mac, but I think this is more Apple’s fault.
I also tried to use the tethering function, connecting the phone to the Macbook Pro (USB cable included) and using it as a HSDPA modem. Right now is 9am, I am sitting down at the table on my balcony and this is the result of my speed test:
A good bandwidth, if you think that this is UMTS and the signal is around 50%.
The only real problem is the price of the internet connection: Vodafone Italy only offers two packages: 400 sessions (15-minutes-sessions) for 30 euros/month or 60 sessions for 15 euros/month. I made my test using a 1-month-free voucher (400 sessions package) that a friend gave me, but I think I will not use on a regular basis unless Vodafone changes tariffs.
Bluetooth works very well, the phone has a live autocomplete function that lets you type only the first digits of a phone number and it will automatically search for that number in your address book and recent-call list.
Unlike my previous branded phones, this one has a really tiny branding, not so heavy and not so ugly. The phone also charges while connected with the USB cable, so you can charge it with your laptop and not to worry about its battery while connected to the internet.
The camera is not good, and photos are not so wonderful. I don’t care that, but if you really need a phone making photos, this one is not for you.
The cell phone reception is slightly worse than the N73 one: it shows only a few bars inside my house, while the old N73 was at “full coverage”.
Anyway, if you’re looking for a good phone, with usueful features, at a good price, I certainly recommend this one.
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2 Responses to “[Review] Samsung SGH-L770V by Vodafone”
I didn’t know you had to decide to change the cell phone, it’s a new news. Must we say goodbye to Nokia N73 forever?
Another question: right now with Tiscali ADSL do you hard put to go over that bandwidth?
By nikos84
on July 30, 2008 - 19:12
@Nikos: you know why, last friday I was completely without phone, and it was not the first time, actually.
Tiscali ADSL - in this very moment - is working fine, about 5 Mbps all the day, and I hope it won’t change :)
By Stefano Testi
on July 31, 2008 - 07:56